2004 Infinity I-35 4 Door Sedan on 2040-cars

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2018 Lincoln Navigator vs luxury SUV rivals: How it compares on paper

The all-new 2018 Lincoln Navigator is an impressive, luxury-lined beast. However, while its Black Label interior stood out most during our first drive of the new Navigator, it also seemed pretty clear that much of this full-size SUV was superior to the competition in a number of fundamental ways. Its Raptor-sourced 3.5-liter V6 had class-leading power for one, and its third-row seat seemed as spacious and comfortable as its rivals' are cramped and barely usable. To search for your next new vehicle, try Autoblog' s Car Finder. Yet, I wanted to take a closer look at how the Navigator fully compares on paper to its competitors - especially the Cadillac Escalade with which it most directly competes. The below spreadsheet should tell the whole story, but as you can see, there's an awful lot of class-leading green highlighter in the Navigator's column. The cargo volume and third-row legroom numbers are particularly telling, with the latter actually going up to 42.3 inches when you slide the second-row fully forward. Now, a few things to note about the above spreadsheet. The GLS-Class is also available as the GLS 550, which boasts a 4.7-liter V8 that just comes up short to the Navigator with 449 horsepower but has to deal with only 5,578 pounds. Its $94,950 price tag is comparable to the Navigator Black Label. Much of the LX 570's information is also applicable to the Toyota Land Cruiser, which, badge aside, could certainly be considered a member of this segment given its feature content and still-hefty price tag. It has better ground clearance and approach/departure angles than its Lexus sibling, along with an as-indicated lower price. Much of the Escalade's information also applies to the GMC Yukon Denali, while the Infiniti QX80 is applicable to the Nissan Armada. Related Video: Cadillac Infiniti Lexus Lincoln Mercedes-Benz SUV Luxury Off-Road Vehicles consumer lincoln navigator

Infiniti shows off the new Q50 engine lineup in Chicago

Infiniti has a raft of engine options it's rolling out on the Q50 sedan. We found out about most of them a couple of months ago, but they're now confirmed in all their turbocharged glory. And they'll all be showcased this week at the Chicago Auto Show. The base engine is a 2.0-liter turbo four based on a Mercedes design and built at the new joint-venture engine plant in Tennessee. The engine produces 208 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque and will be available in the Q50 2.0t in either rear- or all-wheel drive. If those specs strike you as familiar, they're the same that you'd find in the Mercedes CLA250 and GLA250, both of which similarly make their 4Matic traction optional, but come standard in front- (not rear-) drive form. Above the four-pot sits a new 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 that replaces the naturally aspirated 3.7-liter unit and will be available in two states of tune. The 3.0t model offers 300 hp and 295 lb-ft, but the performance model – dubbed Q50 Red Sport 400 – cranks it up to 400 hp and 350 lb-ft. Both versions come mated to a seven-speed automatic transmission and either rear- or all-wheel drive. The fourth powertrain options carries over in the form of the Q50 Hybrid, which still pairs a naturally aspirated 3.5-liter V6 to a 50-kW electric motor for a combined output of 360 hp. So if you like your sports sedan to come with some manner of assist, the Q50 offers plenty of choices. But if you're in the atmospheric camp, we're afraid you'll have to look elsewhere. Related Video: Infiniti Presents Three New Q50 Sports Sedan Engines for the First Time at the 2016 Chicago Auto Show - Q50 Red Sport 400 offers new 400-horsepower VR-series 3.0-liter V6 twin turbo engine - Advanced 300-horsepower VR V6 twin-turbo version shown for the first time in Chicago - Pair of new V6 twin turbo engines joined by new 2.0-liter turbo inline-4 rated at 208 horsepower CHICAGO (Feb. 11, 2016) – Infiniti today revealed the full lineup of new advanced engines for its Infiniti Q50 sports sedan at the 2016 Chicago Auto, including two 3.0-liter V6 twin turbo engines and a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder turbo engine. The trifecta of new powerplants will be available beginning this spring. Joining the three new engine-equipped Q50 models – designated the Q50 2.0t, Q50 3.0t and Q50 Red Sport 400 – on display at the country's oldest and best-attended auto show are the redesigned 2016 QX60 crossover and the all-new QX30 premium active crossover.

How Lexus, Infiniti plan to win back luxury buyers from Germans, Tesla

DETROIT — Japanese luxury auto brands Lexus and Infiniti have used the Detroit Auto Show to test new ways to regain momentum against Germany's prestige automakers and Tesla. The Japanese are fighting to gain ground in the U.S. luxury market as Audi and Mercedes-Benz have expanded sales and Tesla has provided a fresh alternative to established brands. Last year, Lexus suffered a 7.6 percent slide in U.S. sales. Acura's 2017 sales fell 3.9 percent from 2016. Infiniti pushed up sales by 11.3 percent — but by selling almost twice as many sport utility vehicles as cars. However, Infiniti's total 2017 sales of 153,415 vehicles put it behind the leading Germany luxury car brands, as well as Acura, Lexus and Cadillac. The Lexus LF-1 Limitless concept SUV model, with its futuristic looks and "Chauffeur mode" semi-autonomous hands-off driving capabilities, signals that Toyota's luxury brand may start to focus more on SUVs than traditional large sedans. The LF-1 also previews a futuristic navigation technology that anticipates where the driver is going based on driving habits and history, and provides hotel recommendations or other concierge services. View 13 Photos "We don't want to be the 'race car' brand; we don't want to be the 'quiet ride' brand. We want to be the brand which is emotionally connected with the customer," said Cooper Ericksen, vice president of U.S. marketing for Lexus. Lexus, Infiniti and Acura launched in the U.S. market in the late 1980s and took advantage of quality problems at Audi and a lack of innovation at the then-leading luxury brands, Cadillac and Lincoln. Now, the structure of the U.S. luxury market has changed. Four brands — Mercedes, BMW, Audi and Lexus — dominate. Tesla delivered 103,000 vehicles in 2017, its best year ever, though that total is still a small fraction of the overall luxury market. Tesla, meanwhile, is trying to overcome "production hell" and increase output of its more affordable compact Model 3 sedan. The highly anticipated car is just starting to reach customers — but with 400,000 preorders, 2018 could be a breakthrough year for Tesla. View 19 Photos In Detroit, Infiniti showed the Q Inspiration Concept sedan powered by a unique, high-efficiency variable-compression gasoline engine. While the prototype is not electric, its exterior might appeal to customers of the Tesla Model S.